Eggs Benedict

Ingredients

4 eggs, at room temperature
4 English muffins, split
20g baby spinach leaves
100g smoked salmon

Hollandaise Sauce

1 tablespoon water
3 egg yolks
125g butter, melted and cooled
1 tablespoon lemon juice, or to taste

Method

To make hollandaise sauce: process water and egg yolks in a food processor until creamy. With motor running, slowly add butter in a thin stream. This should take 3 minutes. Stir in lemon juice. Transfer to a bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Cover surface with cling film.

To make poached eggs (the way professionals do it): Tear a square of cling film. Drizzle with oil, and spread with your fingers to evenly grease. Lay into a small cup or bowl, overhanging the sides. Break the egg into the cling film and pull the plastic up to gather it around the egg.

Expel all the air around the egg, and twist the cling film to shape the egg. Tie the plastic, sliding the knot down close to the egg to preserve the shape. Place into a pan of simmering water and poach for 5 minutes, until the white has set but the yolk is still runny.

Meanwhile, toast muffins. Top muffin base with spinach leaves and smoked salmon.

Lift the eggs from the water with a slotted spoon, place on top of the smoked salmon and using scissors, carefully cut the cling film below the knot. Gently peel away the cling film.

Drizzle with hollandaise sauce and season well. Serve.

Notes & Tips

Hollandaise sauce is a simple emulsion of butter, egg yolks and lemon juice. It is made easily in a blender or food processor and can be kept warm in a bowl sitting over warm water, the surface covered with cling film to stop a skin forming.